stint
1 Americanverb (used without object)
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to be frugal; get along on a scanty allowance.
Don't stint on the food.
They stinted for years in order to save money.
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Archaic. to cease action; desist.
verb (used with object)
noun
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a period of time spent doing something.
a two-year stint in the army.
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an allotted amount or piece of work.
to do one's daily stint.
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limitation or restriction, especially as to amount.
to give without stint.
- Synonyms:
- tour of duty, tour, term, shift
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a limited, prescribed, or expected quantity, share, rate, etc..
to exceed one's stint.
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Obsolete. a pause; halt.
noun
verb
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to be frugal or miserly towards (someone) with (something)
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archaic to stop or check (something)
noun
-
an allotted or fixed amount of work
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a limitation or check
-
obsolete a pause or stoppage
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
stintednessnoun
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stinternoun
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stintlessadjective
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unstintedadjective
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unstintingadjective
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stintedlyadverb
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stintinglyadverb
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unstintinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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stintsimple
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stintssimple
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have stintedperfect
-
has stintedperfect
-
am stintingprogressive
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are stintingprogressive
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is stintingprogressive
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have been stintingperfect progressive
-
has been stintingperfect progressive
Past
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stintedsimple
-
had stintedperfect
-
was stintingprogressive
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were stintingprogressive
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had been stintingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of stint1
First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English verb stinten, stenten “to cease,” Old English styntan “to make blunt, dull”; cognate with Old Norse stytta “to shorten” ( cf. stunt 1); noun derivative of the verb
Origin of stint2
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English; stynte, stint; further origin unknown
Explanation
The noun stint means a set amount of time in which you do something — often work of some sort. "She served a stint in the army, followed by a stint in an office setting, before settling on a career as a lounge singer." Unlike a project or vocation, a stint can refer to the stretch of time spent doing a particular job. You apply for a job, but you refer to your past stint in the Peace Corps. As a verb, stint means to be sparing or frugal, or restrict in a stingy manner ("to skimp"). "The school board chose to make cuts at the administrative level, rather than stint on the children's education."
Vocabulary lists containing stint
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Among her studio partners on “But What the Hell Do I Know” are the producers Stint and Tyler Cole and the songwriter Salem Ilese, the last known for her early TikTok hit “Mad at Disney.”
From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 13, 2025
I love working with Stint and all of my producers because they have such a wide palette when it comes to music.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2025
In contrast to Stint, Instaworks and Gigpro are suited more for skilled or experienced workers who want or need short-term shifts.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 24, 2021
A face on the screen explained that Stint could help students earn money by working brief temporary stints at places like restaurants and bars that require little training or experience.
From Seattle Times • Aug. 24, 2021
In the Evening, we each do our Stint at cooking on the Fire.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
